jumping off of cliffs sounds exhilarating

On Saturday evening, I decided that my life has been too boring. I have not experienced

mountain biking
rock climbing
skydiving
base jumping
kayaking

or any of the other incredible outdoors activities featured in the Banff Mountain Film Festival (World Tour version). The people in these films were absolutely amazing. I envied their sense of adventure, the way they pushed their bodies to the limit, and their attitudes toward life. I wanted upper body strength like the rock climbers, coordination like the mountain skiiers, balance like the off-trail unicyclers, and mental fortitude like base jumpers.

The movies were so engaging that my body was reacting to the situations of the athletes on the screen. My palms started sweating as the one rock climber tried over and over again reach that one handhold on the arch. My legs tensed as the mountain biker balanced precariously on slender trees. My heart jumped as the the woman leapt from the top of a very high cliff and sped through the air. Just thinking about it all now gets me excited.

Will I ever manage to do these activities? I hope so, but I doubt it. They cost too much money. But you can be certain I will do my best to live through these athletes and their wonderful adventures again at next year's show.